Bangkok, Thailand - Cough, Cough, Cough!

The street we are living on.

People offer to sell you stuff everywhere you go. The Tuk-Tuk drivers do the same when they are not winding their way in and out of traffic. If you tell them where you are going, they may try and convince you it is closed or not worth it and then recommend somewhere else. Of course they offer to take you there for an outrageous fee, so the phrase you say most often is “No Thanks”. The city is a very busy one and trying to cross the road is a nightmare: even at a zebra crossing or a set of lights, you take your life in hands.

There are Wat’s (Temples) on almost every corner. There are around 300 in the city. Wat Arun and Wat Poh are just two of many that we spent some time in. You can climb up quite a way on Wat Arun, and we did. It’s really quite high and you get a good view across the river to the Grand Palace. The Grand Palace looks like a Wat but isn’t. We didn’t actually go in there because it costs too much. The river you look across is quite a mucky river that goes through the city but I have no idea what it is called. We crossed it very briefly on a ferry to a temple. It was very wobbly due to the high number of boats bombing up and down the river: Almost as much traffic as on the roads. The city is such a contrast to Phuket and Krabi where we have come from to get here. Gone are the lush green islands and coastlines with golden sand. All we have now is millions of people rushing around and choking smog in your lungs. Nice enough place for a short visit but to be honest I’m looking forward to our next stop Chiangmai already.